To manage marketing requests, give everyone one way to ask, using a short request form. Then review new requests at a fixed time each week, prioritise them against your goals, and track every request in one shared place. Most request chaos comes from having too many entry points, not too many requests.
If your team gets requests through WhatsApp, email, hallway conversations and "quick favours" from leadership, this guide is for you. It sets out a six-step process you can start this week, a sample request form you can copy, and how to run it in Asana.
Why marketing requests get out of control
Ask any marketing manager in Dubai or Riyadh how requests reach their team, and the answer is usually "every way possible":
- WhatsApp messages from sales: "Can you make a quick flyer for tomorrow?"
- Emails with half a brief and no deadline.
- Leadership requests that jump the queue without anyone saying what gets delayed.
- Meeting asks that nobody wrote down.
- Repeat requests for the same thing, because nobody knew it already existed.
The result is familiar:
- Work starts without a proper brief, so it comes back for revisions two or three times.
- Nobody can say what the team is working on, or why a request is late.
- The loudest request wins, not the most important one.
- The team is busy all week but strategic work, the campaigns that actually move numbers, keeps getting pushed.
- Peak seasons break everything. Before Ramadan, Eid, National Day or White Friday, requests double while the deadline stays the same.
The fix isn't working harder. It's a simple intake process that every requester follows.
A 6-step process to manage marketing requests
- Create one front door. Choose a single place for all requests, ideally a short online form. Announce it to the company, and from that day reply to every WhatsApp or email request with the form link. It feels strict for two weeks; after that, people use it without being asked.
- Ask for a proper brief up front. Your form should collect everything you'd otherwise chase later: goal, audience, deadline, languages and approvers. A sample form is below.
- Review requests at a fixed time. Pick one owner and two short slots a week, for example Sunday and Wednesday mornings. Every new request gets reviewed then: accepted, sent back for more information, or scheduled for later. Requesters know when to expect an answer, so they stop chasing.
- Prioritise with simple rules, not volume. Agree three or four rules with leadership in advance, such as:
- Does it support a current campaign or business goal?
- Is the deadline fixed (an event, a launch, a regulatory date)?
- How much effort does it take?
- Who is it for: a customer-facing activity or internal use?
When a senior request arrives, show what it would delay and let them choose. The rules make "no" or "not this week" easier to say.
- Make every request visible. Track all accepted requests in one shared board with a status: New, In progress, In review, Done. Requesters can check progress themselves instead of messaging the team.
- Review and improve every month. Look at how many requests came in, from which teams, how long they took and how many needed rework. Use this to fix the form, plan resources and prepare for seasonal peaks.
Sample marketing request form
Keep it short: under 10 questions, so people actually fill it in. Copy this as a starting point.
| Field | Answer type | Why you need it |
|---|---|---|
| Request type | Dropdown: social post, design, video, event, email, web page, other | Routes the request to the right person and template |
| What is this for? | Short text | The business goal, not just the deliverable |
| Target audience | Short text | Shapes message, tone and channel |
| Languages | Checkboxes: English, Arabic, both | Arabic and English versions need separate time and review |
| Deadline | Date | Plus a checkbox: is this date fixed? |
| Key message and details | Long text | The core of the brief |
| Reference files | File upload | Logos, examples, product details |
| Approvers | People picker | Who signs off, decided before work starts |
| Budget (if any) | Number | For paid media, print or production |
Use branching so each request type only shows the questions it needs. For example, a video request asks for length and format, and a social post asks for platforms.
How to run this process in Asana
You can start with a spreadsheet and a free online form. Once you get more than a handful of requests a week, a work management tool saves hours. Here is how each step works in Asana:
| Step | In Asana |
|---|---|
| One front door | An Asana form shared as a link or embedded on your intranet. Every submission becomes a task in a "Marketing requests" project |
| A proper brief | Form questions with branching, so each request type asks only what it needs (Advanced plan) |
| Fixed review time | A "New" section where requests wait; a recurring task reminds the owner to review on Sunday and Wednesday |
| Prioritisation | Custom fields for priority, effort and campaign, so you can sort and filter the queue |
| Visibility | A board view with columns for New, In progress, In review and Done. Requesters follow their own task |
| Routing and templates | Rules that assign each request type to the right person and add the right checklist automatically |
| Approvals | Proofing for comments directly on designs, and approvals that record who signed off (Advanced) |
| Monthly review | A dashboard showing requests by team, type, turnaround time and rework |
Asana's AI Teammates can help too. The Campaign Brief Writer turns rough notes into a structured brief, and the Content Localization Manager helps prepare Arabic and English versions.
Tips for marketing teams in the UAE and Saudi Arabia
- Plan peak seasons early. Set a request cut-off date for Ramadan, Eid, National Day and White Friday campaigns, for example four weeks before. Anything after that goes into the next cycle.
- Treat Arabic and English as two deliverables. Give each version its own task, owner and approval, so one doesn't hold up the other or get skipped.
- Have a polite WhatsApp reply ready. For example: "Thanks! Please submit this through our request form [link] so it doesn't get lost. We review new requests every Sunday and Wednesday." Save it as a quick reply.
- Mind the different working weeks. Teams in Saudi Arabia and the UAE may not share the same weekend. Choose review days that work for both.
- Bring agencies into the same system. Invite agencies and freelancers as guests on the projects they work on, so briefs and feedback stay in one place.
Frequently asked questions
What is a marketing intake process?
A marketing intake process is the set way requests reach the marketing team: one request form, a regular review, agreed priority rules and one place to track progress. It replaces ad-hoc requests by email, WhatsApp and meetings.
What should a marketing request form include?
The request type, business goal, audience, languages, deadline, key message, reference files, approvers and budget. Keep it under 10 questions so people complete it.
How do you prioritise marketing requests?
Agree simple rules with leadership in advance: link to business goals, fixed deadlines, effort and audience. Review new requests at a set time each week and rank them against those rules, not by who asks loudest.
How do you stop people sending requests on WhatsApp?
Reply to every WhatsApp or email request with the form link and a short, polite message. Within a few weeks, people go to the form first.
What is the best tool for managing marketing requests?
Any tool with forms, a shared board and automation can work. Asana is popular with marketing teams because forms, approvals, proofing and dashboards are all in one place, and agencies can join as guests.
Ready to bring order to your marketing requests?
Vistar, an Asana Gold Solutions Partner with offices in Dubai and Riyadh, sets up request forms, workflows and approvals for marketing teams across the GCC, in Arabic and English. See how we set up Asana for marketing teams →